Boston Globe Editorial - Gibson's ugly passion
Boston Globe Editorial - Gibson's ugly passion
Copyright by The Boston Globe
Published: August 2, 2006
Despite concerns about anti- Jewish images in Mel Gibson's 2004 film "The Passion of the Christ," even pointed critics from the Anti-Defamation League refrained from labeling Gibson himself as an anti-Semite. After all, how could they know what was in Gibson's heart? Gibson answered that question last week with a vile anti- Semitic tirade unleashed during his arrest on suspicion of drunken driving in Malibu, California.
Gibson quickly issued a statement apologizing for his "vitriolic and harmful words." It's tempting to dismiss the apology as nothing more than damage control. But one part of the statement is simply too thought- provoking to ignore: "I am in the process of understanding where those vicious words came from during that drunken display, and I am asking the Jewish community, whom I have personally offended, to help me on my journey through recovery."
At least Gibson came to the right place. Jewish thinkers have had a few millennia to ponder why certain people, whether from ancient Persia or modern Europe, would set in motion forces that could destroy an entire people. And the best explanation among many is that hatred flourishes best among absolutists who have shed the capacity to feel for others. Gibson the artist and Gibson the drunk have stumbled down this path.
In 1965, the Second Vatican Council, called by Pope John XXIII, rejected the calumny of Jewish deicide. But Gibson made clear in a 1992 interview with El País that he rejected such changes in church thinking. In a 2003 interview with Time, he complained that Vatican II had "corrupted the institutions of the church." Pope John Paul II, a man who understood the power of images as well as any moviemaker, would go on to make a historic visit to the Great Synagogue of Rome and establish full diplomatic relations between the Vatican and Israel. Gibson would go on to make a film thick with images of bloodthirsty Jews.
Anti-Semitism comes easily to those who believe that their faith or political system is the final answer. The very existence of Jews serves as an affront to claims of absoluteness. Gibson now asks for guidance from the Jewish community. One of its leaders, Rabbi Irving Greenberg, offers some in his book "The Jewish Way": "Christians who believe there is salvation outside the church and that there is room for many mansions in God's house have no problems with Jews."
Gibson has checked himself into a clinic for treatment of alcoholism. He said he would seek to exist "in harmony in a world that seems to have gone mad." To begin, Gibson would do well to acknowledge that his remarks did not reflect the world's madness, but contributed to it.
- The Boston Globe
Copyright by The Boston Globe
Published: August 2, 2006
Despite concerns about anti- Jewish images in Mel Gibson's 2004 film "The Passion of the Christ," even pointed critics from the Anti-Defamation League refrained from labeling Gibson himself as an anti-Semite. After all, how could they know what was in Gibson's heart? Gibson answered that question last week with a vile anti- Semitic tirade unleashed during his arrest on suspicion of drunken driving in Malibu, California.
Gibson quickly issued a statement apologizing for his "vitriolic and harmful words." It's tempting to dismiss the apology as nothing more than damage control. But one part of the statement is simply too thought- provoking to ignore: "I am in the process of understanding where those vicious words came from during that drunken display, and I am asking the Jewish community, whom I have personally offended, to help me on my journey through recovery."
At least Gibson came to the right place. Jewish thinkers have had a few millennia to ponder why certain people, whether from ancient Persia or modern Europe, would set in motion forces that could destroy an entire people. And the best explanation among many is that hatred flourishes best among absolutists who have shed the capacity to feel for others. Gibson the artist and Gibson the drunk have stumbled down this path.
In 1965, the Second Vatican Council, called by Pope John XXIII, rejected the calumny of Jewish deicide. But Gibson made clear in a 1992 interview with El País that he rejected such changes in church thinking. In a 2003 interview with Time, he complained that Vatican II had "corrupted the institutions of the church." Pope John Paul II, a man who understood the power of images as well as any moviemaker, would go on to make a historic visit to the Great Synagogue of Rome and establish full diplomatic relations between the Vatican and Israel. Gibson would go on to make a film thick with images of bloodthirsty Jews.
Anti-Semitism comes easily to those who believe that their faith or political system is the final answer. The very existence of Jews serves as an affront to claims of absoluteness. Gibson now asks for guidance from the Jewish community. One of its leaders, Rabbi Irving Greenberg, offers some in his book "The Jewish Way": "Christians who believe there is salvation outside the church and that there is room for many mansions in God's house have no problems with Jews."
Gibson has checked himself into a clinic for treatment of alcoholism. He said he would seek to exist "in harmony in a world that seems to have gone mad." To begin, Gibson would do well to acknowledge that his remarks did not reflect the world's madness, but contributed to it.
- The Boston Globe
posted by Carlos T Mock at 5:52 PM
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